Back in my days: Short Story: Day of the Departed
by Skyla Talon
Summary: Kai is an average ninja, except that he has a secret. When his past starts catching up, a thousand questions about him pop up as well... Where did he get his powers, if not an ancestor? Who is Nya really? This Day of the Departed started out as normal...but quickly turns strange when the ninjas mortal enemies from the past come back for revenge. Can the Ninjas save the day again?
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hello! Super short, fun prologue…and then onto the story! Got to love the ninja. By the way, yesterday I watched the Day of the Departed for the first time…and I seriously thought at the beginning that they were running late for a battle for Ninjago…not late to do some last minute shopping! Glad to know where their priorities lie. Anyways…this is only going to be three to four chapters long. Thus why it is labeled as a short.**

 **Also, if you are new to this story please read Books One through Six of the Back In My Days series to make sense of some of the things that will come up…**

 **By the way…isn't Dr. Saunders one of the Hands of Time? Sorry, I heard that somewhere and then he showed up in the Day of the Departed…and he looked nothing like the evil twin I was imagining.**

 **Disclaimer: I own Nothing! Except for my OCs!**

Prologue: Do NOT be late!

I laughed as I looked over the new, high tech rides that Mr. Borg just made for us. Jay rubbed his hands together as he nudged a flickering Cole. "Sweet! We have to test these things out, like right now!"

Sensei quickly shook his head, gently stroking his beard. "I am afraid that is not possible right now. We still have to get to the gift shop before it closes…and Dr. Saunders wants to meet up with us before we separate to celebrate with our families." His eyes latched on Nya and me, as if wondering what it was that we actually did on this particular holiday.

Lloyd slipped past his uncle, handing him a teething Koko. "Relax… we'll be back in time. How about we meet you, Mom, and Koko in front of the gift shop?"

Sensei spluttered as he held his niece, his eyes round with surprise. "Lloyd!"

"I call dibs on the Turbo Jet!" Jay screeched as he bolted towards the only new vehicle that could fly.

"Jay!" Sensei was clearly highly exasperated over this whole thing.

Zane, Cole, and Nya charged past him to claim vehicles. I yelped, before running after them. "Hey! Wait for me!"

Sensei groaned as he handed Koko to Misako. "Here…she's your daughter…and they're my students!" Whipping around, he glared at them for five seconds, before crumbling. "Do NOT be late!"

"We won't! We're ninja, we're always on time!" Cole piped up as he started up the new vehicle he was testing out.

"Actually…" Zane timidly lifted a hand up.

"Do not talk Zane!" We all yelled as we mock glared at him.

Zane shook his head, pressing down on the gas. Lloyd glanced back up at his family. "We'll be on time, honestly."

With that, we all stepped on the gas and shot off to check out the new vehicles...

…

I smirked as I revved the Turbo Bike that I was riding, eyes darting over to the other Turbo Bike which Nya was driving. We were passing through Jamankai Village, by silent agreement on where our destination should be. So it was several hours drive to Ninjago City, we all just felt like going there. Jay flew past us, the communication device built into the vehicles humming to life. " _Hey guys? As anyone seen Cole?_ "

I snapped my head back, scanning the road behind me. "Umm, no. He's been flickering a lot lately, what if he lost control of his vehicle and drifted off?"

" _I'll go check_!" Jay spun the Turbo Jet around to scan the other streets in search of his best friend.

We didn't go too far before Jay returned with Cole. Cole appeared to be grumbling under his breath, though I couldn't hear what he was saying, due to his communications being off. Jay flew over to Lloyd, flicking his communication on. " _We need to keep an extra close eye on Cole. He's flickering so much that he faded to the point of he lost control of his Turbo vehicle._ "

Lloyd flicked his communication on, a frown obvious in his voice. " _Will do. Kai, Nya? Our offer is still up…_ "

I bit back a groan as I mentally contacted Nya. _What do we do? I love the kid…and Misako is great…but we can't spend the holidays with them and our parents…since our parents are the problem with that!_ I fell back a bit, so as to be behind Cole and not in front of him.

Nya sighed out loud as she acknowledges our little dilemma. _Do you want to tell him the truth…or lie to him and hope it's the truth cause we don't know!_ A single tear dropped unnoticed down her cheek. I tightened my grip on the Bike's handles, staring straight ahead. _Sis…it's going to be ok. We'll just do what we've been during for every Day of the Departed since we arrived here. We don't have to explain to anyone that we haven't had any contact with our parents since I met Sensei._

Nya nodded in my direction, before speaking into her built in comlink. "Sorry Lloyd…we were kinda hoping for a quiet, gathering with our own loved ones. We're writing letters to GrandCappy."

Zane spoke up, interest flooding his voice. " _You mean you are not going to Kryptarium Prison to spend time with Captain Soto?_ "

I felt my eyebrow slowly inch upwards. "Umm, no? Last time we tried visiting GrandCappy the warden accused us of trying to break him out. Letters are safer…and phone calls. We already had a long talk with him about our parents…" Too late, I realized what it was I had just said.

" _What do you mean…talked about your parents? That makes it sound like that they're dead or something._ " Lloyd demanded over our communications.

Nya shot me a death look, before concentrating on the upcoming bend in the road. "Now you know why we really don't want you to meet them."

I promptly hollered back at her. "They're not dead! The bodies were never found!"

For some reason everyone slammed on their brakes. Which lead to Nya and I slamming on ours to avoid crashing into them. Cole somehow managed to control his ghostly form long enough to turn on his communications. " _What do you mean the bodies were never found!?_ "

Nya mumbled something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like _idiot_ , before speaking up to the others. "Cole…it means that there are no bodies…which we're hoping means that they are still alive…somewhere."

Zane climbed out of his vehicle, titling his head to the burned down monastery. "Since we have arrived…who wants to go first?"

Nya sat down crossed legged, a small smile on her face as we all settled down with her, right where the old training equipment used to be located before the fire. "I'll go first. My best memory of this place would be when Zane wore that ridiculous apron."

Laughter rang out as we all nodded in agreement. Zane blushed, before mumbling something about how he still had the apron. Lloyd glanced over at Jay, who was bouncing. "Ok…my favorite memory is teaching Zane and Kai how to play video games. I mean, Zane never got the hang of it, but man Kai! You learned quick!"

Cole lifted a hand up, a grin on his face. "Ok…I am interrupting you right there, or else we will never get to everyone. My favorite memory is when Sensei scolded us for putting our training off…after that happened; we had to deal with the serpentine. Thankfully, we realized that Sensei was telling the truth."

Zane hummed in agreement, before titling his head back to look at the large twisted burnt black oak tree. "My favorite memory is finding the Falcon. He is a great companion." As he spoke, the new, upgraded version of Falcon landed on his shoulder.

I bit my bottom lip as I realized that it was my turn. "My favorite memory is… I don't know. I have soo many good memories of this place, I can't decide."

Lloyd groaned as he ran his fingers through his messy blonde hair. "Kai…you said that last year and the year before. Ever since we started this tradition, you try to avoid sharing a memory."

A groan escaped me as I tilted my head back to look up at the clear blue sky. "Ok…how about when we first met? Not every day that someone wakes up to a very nice complete stranger checking your temperature."

Zane frowned, his brows knitting together. "I am afraid that I do not recall that instance. Which one of us did that?"

Jay sighed as he looked at Zane. "It was you Zane. I remember, Cole and I told you not to do that, but you were all concerned that his injuries had been infected and he might have been running a fever."

I shook my head smiling as I unwrapped my sandwich. "I wasn't running a fever. Sensei tended to my injuries the night before."

Jay fumbled with the large thermos that held our lemonade, a stack of paper cups in front of him. "Can we just do the picnic part now? Cause I am starving! Like, I could eat a horse…no! A…" Jay jumped suddenly as a still flickering Cole slammed a hand over his mouth.

"We get it. You're hungry. Let's get going with lunch." Cole groaned, even as he disappeared from view, only to flicker back into reality.

We continued chatting amongst ourselves as we broke out the sandwiches, bags of chips, veggies, and of course, cookies. Smiles abounded as we relaxed, chatting about how much we've grown in the past…and how much we've grown since the last Day of the Departed.

 **A/N: Done! Next chapter will be when Day of the Departed actually starts; right now I am explaining why they were late. Apparently the ninja have made a tradition that every Day of the Departed they go have a picnic at the old Monastery and talk about first, everyone who had lived or visited it tells everyone their favorite memory of the place, then they eat their picnic. As they eat, they talk about just about anything, however they tend to concentrate on past events that helped shape them as people.**

 **Review!**

 **SkyTalon**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello! Hmm, time for a quick scramble back to the city…really should have listened to Sensei guys! Again, this is only going to be a couple of chapters long. Most of it will be in Cole's POV, but some will be in Kai's POV. Kai and Nya will have you mentally strangling them by the end of this chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I own Nothing! Except for my OCs!**

Chapter One: Oops, we're late. Where's Cole?

Sand flew from underneath the Turbo Bikes as Nya and I shot across the desert. Lloyd and Zane shot past the sand dunes we had just passed as they tried to keep up with us. Cole and Jay brought up the rear. I reached over to readjust my communications. "How are we doing on time?"

Cole's voice crackled over the system. " _Good…for now. I think. Zane?_ "

Zane responded instantly, his voice low. " _At this rate we can make it…if we break some of the speed limits. P.I.X.A.L.? Can you raise our speed?_ "

She must have done what it was that he had asked, since he suddenly shot past us. Sensei suddenly contacted us, his voice full of concern. " _Where are you? I am already at the rendezvous point._ "

Lloyd responded, his voice hard. " _We're on our way. Don't worry we'll get there in time._ "

Jay suddenly spoke up, his voice anxious. " _Guys? Cole is drifting off again. I'll go back and help him._ "

~Cole's POV~

I felt panic rise up as I waved my hand through the controls over and over again, unable to get a hold on them. I glanced back out of the windshield in time to see a large sand dune rise up in front of me. Wincing, I watched helplessly as the new Turbo vehicle I was in ratcheted off the dune…and nearly yet the Turbo Jet that Jay was in.

" _Hey! I know you're a ghost, but I'm not! And I rather keep it that way!"_

I grimaced as I finally regained control of my hands. "Sorry Jay… I couldn't get a grip on the controls."

Lloyd's voice suddenly came across the communication device, his voice strained. " _We need to go ultraTurbo mode. It's the only way to get there in time!_ "

I pulled over to follow closely to the combined Turbo vehicles. It didn't take long before we were zooming through the streets of New Ninjago City, citizens waving at us as they grabbed hold to prevent them from being blown away from the high speed wind that followed our new vehicles. I could see the Museum coming up, and pressed further down on the gas. Whipping the vehicle into a near one-eighty circle, I slammed onto the brakes. Popping the door open, I leapt out of it, followed closely by my friends.

Lloyd ran up to his uncle and mother, a frantic look on his face. "Are we too late?"

Sensei glanced up at the sky, noting the position of the moon that was already rising up in the evening sky. "Hmm, if you hurry, you might be able to make it."

With that, we bolted inside, heading straight to the Gift Shop.

…

I sighed as I followed the others out of the now closed Gift Shop, holding the lantern I just purchased. Jay was squealing about the holiday, noting several kids in costumes that were carrying bags of candy. I shook my head at him as I reflected how Dad and I were planning on lighting our lanterns together and that was just about it. Since my mom disappeared two days before my sixth Day of the Departed, we just weren't as into it as most people. I glanced over at Kai and Nya and was suddenly glad that I apparently had friends who tried to think positively in a negative situation.

Sensei walked over to join us, Misako right behind him with Koko balanced on her hip. "Hmm, that is not the real reason for the Day of the Departed. It is to honor those who have gone on before us…and to spend time with our loved ones that are still with us."

He looked over at Misako and Koko as he said that last bit, Lloyd walking over to join them. Just then, a strange guy wearing bright red dress suit walked up to them, his ridiculous long white mustache twitching as he twisted it in his fingers. "Why if it isn't my favorite ninja!"

Sensei dipped his head towards him out of respect, a warm smile on his face. "Dr. Saunders, I heard you are opening a new exhibit today in honor of the holiday."

Dr. Saunders laughed, unaware how Kai and Nya were stiffening and moving away from him. "Please call me by my first name! Sander."

Jay leaned close to Kai, who honestly looked like he had seen a ghost. "Sander Saunders? I think I'll stick with Dr. Saunders."

Kai nodded, still looking uneasy. "Good…cause I don't think either is his real name."

I frowned, confused by that statement…and yet the twins looked genuinely scared. I couldn't help but wonder what was up with that…and if I was the only one who noticed. "Cole! We're leaving without you!"

Startled, I looked up to see Nya looking back at him, amusement dancing in her eyes…right alongside a wariness that I have never seen her express before. "Coming Nya." I made a mental note to get to the bottom of this later.

Once I went through the door, I immediately noticed that the new Hall of Villainy truly was a hall dedicated to the villains we have defeated over the years. While everyone was oohing and aahing over the wax figurines. A frown crossed my face upon noticing that there was no statue of Sensei Yang…the guy that turned me into a ghost. Strolling through the exhibit, I walked over to the painting of the Master of Airjitzu, staring at it. Glancing down at the exhibits information, I felt frustration over the fact it didn't tell me anything I didn't know. Sighing, I started to raise my eyes up again…only to realize that there was a strange weapon that appeared to be a cross between a sword and a shruiken sitting behind a clear solid stone case. "Hey! Dr. Saunders! What is this!?" When no one responded to my question, I walked back to the others, waving my arms in the air to get their attention. "Guys! Over here!"

Nya suddenly turned, looking straight past me to the strange blade. With a small, terrified gasp, she rushed over to the exhibit, a soft barely noticeable whisper escaping her. "The Yin Blade."

"Well, at least someone knows the answer to my question." I grumbled as I followed her back into the room…only for everyone to casually walk through me as if I wasn't there.

~Kai's POV~

 _Where's Cole?_ I worriedly asked Nya as I followed her to the Yin blade. I had noticed that Cole hadn't been with us for awhile, but tried to keep my worry down a notch or two. Which was harder than I liked since we highly suspected that Dr. Saunders wasn't who he claimed he was. I really hope he is and we're not being overly paranoid. I really hate to be right and the same guy who gave me my scar was standing right in front of me. _I don't know where Cole is Kai…but I am worried that Kru…_ I quickly interrupted her, panic seizing my heart. _Dr. Saunders…we don't know if it's really him or not._

Nya shot me a worried look, ignoring the lecture the supposed Dr. Saunders was giving us. _But we both recognized him…he's one of them!_

I sighed softly as I looked around for Cole. Unease slipped in as I wondered where he could possibly be…part of me wanted to believe that he was still with us, but a bad feeling told me that something was wrong…like really wrong. Come on Cole…now is not the time to disappear on us, not when the Yin Yang Eclipse is nearly upon us…

 **A/N: Done! Hmm, see? What did I tell you…Kai and Nya know something's wrong, they're worried about where Cole is when he is still with them…but they're not telling anyone this. Also, Kai and Nya are frightened of Dr. Saunders…still trying to wrap my mind around that's Krux…I mean….how?**

 **Review!**

 **SkyTalon**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hello! Hmm, time for everything to go downhill. Cole, next time everyone is ignoring you… pester Kai and Nya! Like, follow them or something…don't steal the Yin Blade and go confront Sensei Yang! Honestly… ninjas, am I right?**

 **Disclaimer: I own Nothing! Except for my OCs!**

Chapter Two: Well…that just happened. Anyone up to chasing Cole down?

 _Ok…we're leaving now. And still no Cole._ I fidgeted as we followed the others out of the Museum, Nya's fingers twitching as she brushed her hand against mine. _I'm sure he's fine…as long as he doesn't get any ideas to take the Yin Blade out of its case to go get revenge on Sensei Yang._ I nodded slightly in agreement, still wary of Dr. Saunders who was bidding goodbye to Sensei.

Lloyd waved at us suddenly, a warm smile on his face as he grabbed his little sister's hand. "Bye guys! Mom, Koko, and I are headed to the Corridors of the Elders to remember Dad. Jay just left to go spend time with his folks… Zane said something about the woods were Dr. Julian first built him. Sensei says we all have to be back in time for the concert during the eclipse."

I nodded even as uneasiness filled me. "Alright…see you later kid." I headed down to the Turbo Bikes, my mind already highlighting the overgrown, never used forgotten roadway that we were about to traverse.

~Cole's POV~

I pressed my foot on the gas pedal, heading straight to the Airjitzu Temple. The mysterious Yin Blade, that according to Dr. Saunders it had magical properties, slide forward slightly, so slight it was barely noticeable. Whipping the steering wheel into a one-eighty, I glared up at the floating island that housed the Airjitzu Temple, slamming the brakes down even as I turned the engine off.

~Kai's POV~

I eased the Turbo Bike over the grassy plain, muscle memory kicking in as I drove over the overgrown dirt road path that hadn't seen anyone pass through in way too many days, Nya and I being the only ones that use it nowadays. Several large tree trunks soaring above us as we navigated the pitch black wilderness. After awhile, I slowed it to a stop as we exited the wilderness and entered a small village. The village had many, small one story homes and a few two story homes that were doubled as stores. Abandoned rice fields and vegetable gardens overrun with weeds scattered the ground. Wild cattle grazed nearby, ears flicking in annoyance at the sudden noise of the Turbo Bikes. Pulling up to the abandoned shop that had a worn sign that read the Four Weapons above it, we parked our rides. Moving silently, we pushed the heavy, rusted shut wooden door open.

~Jay's POV~

I chuckled to myself as Ma, Pa, and I looked through an old scrapbook that was filled with pictures of my grandparents and ourselves, talking calmly as we reflected on our pasts with each other.

~Zane's POV~

I closed my eyes as the monument I had built of my father stood in front of me, its likeness to him perfection. Falcon rested on my shoulder, a low sound rising from his throat as he tried to express sorrow over our lost.

~Lloyd's POV~

I listened intently as Mom talked about all the good Dad had done once I had cured him. Koko sucked on her fist, her eyes round as she listened to the speech, her free hand clutching my pants' leg tightly…not that I wanted her grubby, sticky hand clutching it.

I reached out to help Mom send our lantern flying gently through the night sky. Koko noticed and let go of my leg long enough to try and bump it upwards too. I smiled at her attempt, glad that I still have her in my life.

~Cole's POV~

I walked into the haunted temple, my hands gripping the Yin Blade tightly as I scanned the entrance hall for the ghost of Sensei Yang. Just then, a flicker of movement caught my attention. As I turned to face him, Sensei Yang stepped forward, his eyes on the Yin Blade in my hands. "The Yin Blade…do you know what you have done?"

"No…but I know what you did! You turned me into a ghost!" I lunged forward, slicing at him. Sensei Yang took a step to the side, making me miss and shatter an old globe of the world.

Laughter escaped Sensei Yang as he tossed his head back. "You fool! You fell right into my trap! Students, hold him in place!"

Several ghosts, none of them were Kai's Cousin Drake unfortunately, appeared out of nowhere and seized my arms. Sensei Yang pulled a pair of handcuffs out of nowhere and clapped them onto my wrists. Eyes flashing with anger, I glared at Sensei Yang. "My friends will come save me…and stop you!"

Sensei Yang laughed as he moved away from me. "You sure about that? Thanks to you, they are in danger."

I felt my heart sink at that, as he used some sort of ghost power to show me that most of my friends and their families were under attack. Wait… "Where's Kai and Nya?"

Sensei Yang grumbled to himself as he realized that I had a point. Kai and Nya appeared to be in some sort of store that I didn't recognize…and no one was attacking them.

~Kai's POV~

I sighed as I looked at the painting that was done of my parents on their wedding day one last time, before turning to Nya. "Come on. If we're going to go look for Cole and make sure he's alright, we need to get going."

Nya nodded in agreement, turning to look at Father's favorite anvil. "Since there is a Yin Yang Eclipse tonight, do you want to take some weapons with us in case we run into past mortal enemies that we have defeated already?"

I nodded in agreement, knowing that she had a point. Nya grinned as she grasped the anvil and started to turn it…only for it to screech loudly to a halt after half a centimeter. I groaned as I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Great…it's rusted shut."

"Hold on a second…" Nya disappeared into the backroom, determination flashing in her eyes. After what felt like forever, she came back out with a brand new can of oil in her hands. "Last year Sensei mentioned to us that this year would be the Yin Yang Eclipse so I prepared ahead of time. Hide this can of oil in the backroom in case the anvil was stuck." She quickly added a few drops of the oil to the anvil. Sitting the can down, she grabbed the anvil and very easily made it turn one-eighty degrees. The second it slid into place, the back wall opened up to reveal a secret stash of what used to be neatly polished and extra sharp weapons. We glanced at each other for five seconds, before tackling the mess. At least we both know how to fix that problem.

…

Chen yelped as Nya lazily sprayed both of his sidekicks, sending them back to the Departed Realm. Chen rapidly pushed several buttons, pulling up a large missile in the process. Before he could do anything else though, a familiar pair of shruikens slammed into him, sending his ghost flying back to the Departed Realm. Sighing, I turned to face our friends who had just arrived at the front of the Museum. "About time you guys got here. Anyone seen Cole?"

Lloyd shook his head fervently, while Zane frowned, worry creasing his brow. "No…why do you ask?"

"Guys! You will not believe what just happened!" Jay suddenly arrived, bouncing with excitement.

Zane and Lloyd took turns repeating back what just happened with our past enemies coming back to life. Jay scowled at them as he walked over to join the rest of us. "Ok, fine, you can guess. Why are all of our past enemies coming back from the dead anyways?"

I rolled my eyes skyward. "Let's see here…we have Yin Yang Eclipse…and the Yin Blade most likely has been stolen from the Museum, which when you combine the two will lead to a rift between the Departed Realm and the real world to open up. Did I miss anything Sensei? Also, I am taking it Morro is helping us this time around."

Sensei widened his eyes in shock as I looked at me, Morro gawking at him from behind him. "Err, yes. With all of that. Sensei Yang is using our past enemies as a distraction. He has apparently tricked Cole into stealing the Yin Blade for him and is holding him prisoner. We have to save him!"

Nya and I glanced at each other, concern flooding us. We knew his disappearing wasn't a good sign.

 **A/N: Done! Hmm, I think Kai and Nya are overly prepared for fighting their past enemies…either that or they really wanted to get into Ray's secret stash of weapons…that really isn't a secret.**

 **Review!**

 **SkyTalon**


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hello! This most likely will be the last chapter of this story…and then we will be going onto Back in my days: Book 7: The Past meets the Present. So exciting! And I am not gonna rethink of that title cause I like it and it fits. Kay? Kay. See ya'll at the end of this little chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I own Nothing! Except for my OCs!**

Chapter Three: Cole! No! We all will miss you…can I have his bed?

~Cole's POV~

I managed to ditch my guard and after finding a couple of other students, tricked them into breaking my handcuffs off. Now I was running upstairs to the attic where I had spotted Sensei Yang heading. Charging into the creepy haunted attic of the haunted temple, I glared at the ghost responsible for this mess. "Give up Yang! You are all by yourself now!"

Sensei Yang laughed, as he waved his arms through the air. "Oh really? Nothing is as it seems here. I am afraid _you_ are the one that is all alone."

Before I could ask what he meant by that, multiple of his students popped out from behind the old crates, weapons drawn. Well…this was going to be fun. Leaping forward, I started kicking them in the face, throwing my all into the fight.

~Kai's POV~

"Soo, let me get this straight…you knew something was up with Cole and still didn't do anything?" Jay questioned me as we flew the _Bounty_ towards the floating island that the housed the Haunted Temple…for the tenth time.

Groaning, I turned to give him my best glare, annoyance flaring up inside of me. "Jay…for the _last_ time! Yes! We had something that we do every Day of the Departed!"

Nya glanced over at us, her frown making it quite clear that she could feel my annoyance despite being on the clear other side of the ship. Walking over, she casually whacked me in the back of the head. "Kai…knock it off. Jay, chill. We technically left early so that we could go look for him. Now, please stop bugging us. We made a mistake, we know that now. And we're trying to fix it." Spinning around she walked back over to join Zane.

Well. At least we know where she stood on this whole mess.

~Cole's POV~

"Seriously?! How are you guys still going? Aren't you even the least bit tired?" I gasped for breath as I stumbled backwards, dismay filling me upon realizing that they weren't giving up too easily. Flipping over two of them, which took more energy than normal, I landed on the ladder that led up to the roof. Grabbing the rungs, I climbed up just in time to see that he had already opened the Rift of the Return and was using Airjitzu to fly up to it. Quickly summoning my own Airjitzu tornado, I flew after him. Tackling him, we fell out of the sky and crashed onto the roof below.

As we struggled to get the upperhand, I spotted his students heading towards us, ready to join in the fight. Sensei Yang also noticed this and called out to them. "Stand back. This fight is between the two of us!" He then easily punched me in the face.

Growling, I attacked back, knocking him down. Sensei Yang slipped away, laughter rising up from him as he proved himself the better ghost. "Why do you keep trying? You are alone! You're so called friends have abandoned you! You can't even see your hands in front of your face. Face it Cole, you a fading away, as one of the departed."

Alarmed, I recoiled away from him, lifting my hands up to see that he was telling the truth. I slunk down on the roof, too depressed to go on. Laughing, he moved to end me, raising the Yin Blade above his head.

" _Cole!"_ I felt confusion flood me, since when did the wind knew my name?

" _Cole!"_ There it was again. I wonder if Sensei knows that the wind can call our names…at least it can call mine apparently.

" _Cole!"_ Why couldn't it just give up? I am through…there is no way out of this.

" _ **Cole!"**_ This time a jolt shot through me as I realized that I wasn't hearing the wind…I was hearing my friends! Snapping my head up, I spotted the _Bounty_ flying towards us…well, trying to.

Pushing myself to a standing position, I glared at Sensei Yang, a strange warmth flooding my arms and fists. "You're wrong Yang. I am not alone! I am a Ninja! By that revelation alone means that I have _brothers_ as well as friends to count on when it truly matters! You are the one that is alone!" I leapt forward, raising my fists, to find that strangely enough, they were glowing orange and the orange glow was creeping up my arms.

Pushing this out of my mind, I slammed my fists into the Yin Blade, which shattered upon contact. Gasps escaped Sensei Yang's students as the spell that made them obedient to him finally broke. Grabbing Sensei Yang and holding him in a choke hold, I turned to them. "Quick! The Rift! You can turn back human if you go through the rift!"

Wails of no escaped Sensei Yang even as they listened to me and leapt through the Rift, coming out of the other side as everyday humans. Sensei Yang escaped from me, dismay flooding his features as he looked down upon his cheering students. "My students…I have failed them." He slumped down, dejection flooding his countenance.

I hesitated, looking first to the Rift, my way back to being normal…and then back at the creator of Airjitzu. Sighing, I did the most logical thing to do. I sat down next to him to find out _why_ he would do all of this. Sensei Yang placed his head into his hands, sorrow flooding his eyes. "I have only ever wanted to be great…to be remembered! When I had found the Yin Blade, I knew it could give me immortality. I practiced… learned the secrets of the Blade. Finally the biggest test came, using it on myself. Everything went wrong… instead of gaining immortality; I turned myself and my students into ghosts. My beautiful temple was suddenly haunted…a _tourist_ trap even. I was a fool. No one will ever remember me…they don't remember me."

I blinked, surprised that he believed no one knew who he was. "You're wrong…you have a spot in the Museum, as the creator of Airjitzu. We have history lessons on you. Everyone DOES know who you are. Sensei Yang is the creator of Airjitzu."

"You're just saying that."

"No, I am not just saying that. Yang, you talked to me through the painting of you in the Museum. You are well known long after you left this mortal world." I looked back at the Rift, noticing that it was already closing.

Sensei Yang suddenly leapt to his feet, seizing me as he leapt into the air. "What are we waiting for? Let's get our bodies back!"

~Kai's POV~

I watched nervously…helplessly, as Sensei Yang and Cole both suddenly flew up to the Rift of the Return. The Rift was getting too small for my liking when Sensei Yang suddenly began attacking Cole…alarmed, I considered summoning my dragon and flying over there to see what was going on and help Cole when Sensei Yang suddenly threw Cole into the rift before dropping his Airjitzu tornado, disappearing from sight.

A loud explosion ripped the air, sending us crashing into the floating island. Groaning, we scrambled to our feet. Sprinting off the once again crashed ship, we scanned the area for any sign that Cole survived…that he made it. I sighed with relief upon picking up his excited breaths from behind a large boulder.

Nya shot me a look, followed by the best explanation why. _Kai…you're broadcasting to me again. Glad to know that you know where Cole is at though._

Jay slumped to the ground, tears building up in his eyes. "Aw man…I will do anything to get Cole back!"

"Anything?" Cole's voice came from behind the boulder, confirming what I already suspected.

"Anything!" Jay repeated, not realizing that he was hearing Cole speak. Lloyd and Zane both perked up immediately, recognizing his voice.

Cole leapt over the boulder, grinning as he looked at Jay. "Including a turn on the Turbo Jet?"

"Cole!" Even though it was Jay that yelled that, we all tackled him in a hug.

I looked Cole over trying to see if there was anything different about him after this ordeal of his. The only thing I could find was a single, ghostly scar next to his one eye. "It's good to have you back."

"It's good to be back…also, Kai? Nya? Where were you two?" Cole knitted his eyebrows together in confusion.

I laughed nervously, not really wanting to explain _that_ to him. Thankfully, Sensei suddenly spoke up, pointing to the Temple. "The curse of the temple has been lifted."

Zane nodded in agreement, looking the suddenly beautiful temple. "This would make a good headquarters for us. I can see us training now in there."

….

"…and then we all moved in and lived happily ever after." Cole finished as he smiled, the flames from the fire throwing strange shadows across his face.

Lou smiled as he placed a hand on his son's shoulder. Dareth was sitting on his other side, holding a guitar of sorts. Ed and Edna were sitting side by side, hands clasped together. Misako chuckled as she held a now three year old Koko on her lap. Lloyd was sitting between his mother and uncle, relaxed. Zane and Echo smiled; content with the story. Nya had her head resting on my shoulder. The only one not impressed with the story was Jay.

"Are you going to keep telling that story until I admit that it isn't haunted anymore? Cause if so…IT AIN'T HAUNTED! I get it!" Jay flung his hands around in the air wildly.

Cole laughed as he glanced back at our headquarters for the past year. "No…it definitely isn't haunted."

With that said; we all pulled out our lanterns and sent them flying into the sky. A year of peace is a wonderful thing…I just wish that this bad feeling I keep having would just go away.

 **A/N: Done! See ya in the next book! Ooh, look, Kai has a bad feeling here. I wonder why…**

 **Review!**

 **SkyTalon**


End file.
